A 16th season for the long-running Theatre of Darkness: Yamishibai TV anime series will begin broadcasting in Japan on January 11, 2026. A new visual was also released on the anime’s official Twitter/X account and TV Tokyo’s official website.
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Akira Funada (director from Seasons 11-15) is directing the anime’s 16th season, with Hiromu Kumamoto (Ninja Collection), Mitsuhiro Sasaki (KJ File), and Kanako Ishigami (Theatre of Darkness: Yamishibai Season 15) as scriptwriters. ILCA is in charge of the animation production for the series.
Kanji Tsuda reprises his role as the Storyteller in the series. Several more cast members will also voice various characters throughout the season, which include:
- • Ryo Hirano
- • Yuta Hoshino
- • Yutaka Shimizu
- • Satoko Tsuchiya
- • Tomoko Oishi
- • Rintaro Sugama
- • Ukyo Okada
- • Iku Wada
- • Yo Koizumi
Japanese female idol group yosugala are performing the 16th season’s ending theme song “Masquerade Night.”
The 15th season of Theatre of Darkness: Yamishibai was released from July 13, 2025 to October 5, 2025. The first season aired in Japan in July 2013, and also inspired two spinoff series titled The World Yamizukan in April 2017 and Ninja Collection in July 2020. A live-action series adaptation premiered in Japan in September 2020.
Crunchyroll is currently streaming all previous seasons of Theatre of Darkness: Yamishibai, The World Yamizukan, and Ninja Collection.
© 「闇芝居」製作委員会2025
Crunchyroll describes the main premise of Theatre of Darkness: Yamishibai as:
Each week at dusk, a man in a yellow mask arrives at a nearby playground. Gather at his feet to listen and learn from the mysterious storyteller. He recounts tales of horror to his captive audience, each story darker and more sinister than the last. Drawing from traditional paper dramas, the stories weave myths, urban legends, and rumors from Japan’s long history of haunting tales.
Sources: Theatre of Darkness: Yamishibai Official Twitter, TV Tokyo Official Website, Crunchyroll News
